CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (KFVS) – Original Post
Math may be a little easier at Southeast Missouri State, but don’t put away your calculators just yet – the curriculum will be tailored to your type of degree.
An equation University officials say has better outcomes.
For every student college algebra is almost a right of passage.
A requirement that brings something special to their education.
“It was one of those classes I took because I had to have it,” said Southeast Missouri State University junior, Kaitlyn Orr.
Okay, so maybe not.
“Not because I felt like it was going to benefit me in the long run personally, and it was kinda hard, and kinda stressful,” Orr said.
Next fall at Southeast Missouri State University math will be factored into your type of degree.
“So, for the arts people, they’re not going to be dividing polynomials, they’re not going to be looking at rational functions, and finding out what x is equal to or what y is equal to,” said Math Department Chairperson Tamela Randolph.
Instead Randoph says they’ll be looking at more statistics, and even some geometry.
For math related majors – they’ll be moving into a precalculus class, and carrying over the algebra.
They even have a course that sums up the content future teachers, just like Orr.
“It’s really going to benefit them in the long run as opposed to me doing random algorithms and stuff like that for a different classroom,” Orr said.
Randolph says it’s beyond getting kids in the classroom – it’s about getting them to cross that stage at graduation.
“So, hopefully they’ll retain, they’ll stay, they’ll get through that mathematics class in one semester, and go on to graduate from here,” Randolph said.
“It makes me feel like I’m going to go in 100-percent, all hands on deck, ready to go in the classroom when it comes to my student teaching. My first day of class – no matter what it is,” Orr said.
These changes are part of following recommendations by The Missouri Math Pathways Task Force.
Formed in 2014 from a Missouri House Bill – it aims to make math more effective for students in the state.
Sherae Honeycutt 
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